There are many ways to finish your Precious Metal Clay pieces, but I like to use Liver of Sulphur the best. I am going to tell you how I like to finish my pieces with Liver of Sulphur and how I have learned to control the results I get. My favorite look for my finished Precious Metal Clay pieces is an antiqued kind of rough style. I also like the color range I can get with the Liver of Sulphur finish.

When I first learned how to use Liver of Sulphur, I was taught to take my somewhat cleaned piece of Precious Metal Clay and just drop it into a bowl of Liver of Sulphur and let it sit there. Then I polished the piece in a tumbler.

When I started experimenting with finishes, I realized that that method really limited the results that I could get with Liver of Sulphur. When I dropped the PMC piece in to a bowl of Liver of Sulphur, the result was that they piece usually turned black. And even if it didn’t, when I polished it in a tumbler afterward, the piece turned black and shiny.

What I do now is different. First, I polish and clean my pieces in a tumbler. I usually will tumble pieces for at least a few hours in a dishwashing soap and water mix, using mixed stainless steel shot. You can use any brand of liquid dishwashing soap.

Second, I use dry Liver of Sulphur pieces dropped into cool water. Remember, that if your Liver of Sulphur solution is warm, it changes the color faster. I want it to change slowly, so that I have more control over the result. I typically use a plastic fork to put my Precious Metal Clay piece on and dip the PMC in and out of the Liver of Sulphur solution. I can dip all or part of the Precious Metal Clay into the Liver of Sulphur.

Once I achieve the color I want, I rinse the Precious Metal Clay off quickly in a waiting bowl of plain water. This stops the color from changing any more. By doing it this way, I can get finishes from pale yellow, to copper, to red, to blue, to purple, all the way to black. Much more interesting than the previous method.